By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Two standouts of the Bacolod Tay Tung High School Thunderbolts have been selected to reinforce the Western Visayas secondary boys basketball team that will compete in the 2025 Palarong Pambansa.

Paul Barcelona and Alfred Ysulan, Jr. are among the three additions to the Region 6 squad, which is to be represented by St. Robert’s International Academy Panda Rockets.

“We saw their abilities during the WVRAA Meet, and we know that they will be a good addition to our squad heading into Palarong Pambansa,” Panda Rockets team manager Eugene Chua said.

“Unlike before, we are fortunate na allowed na ulit ang teams to make some additions sa lineup. This will make us competitive as we aim to represent the region well,” he added.

Pete Barcelona, Paul’s father, said that he is extremely proud of the new experience of his son representing Western Visayas in the Palarong Pambansa, which is to be held in Laoag, Ilocos Norte next month.

“As a father, I am proud with this new achievement for Paul. It is not all the time that players are given an opportunity to represent the region in Palarong Pambansa,” Pete said.

“This is a new experience for him, and he will surely learn from this, and [it] will also make him a better basketball player in the future,” he added.

Western Visayas is aiming to make an impact in the secondary boys basketball event, which was dominated by the National Capital Region in the previous years./ASC, WDJ